Headmaster's Welcome

Headmaster's Weekly News, Friday 2nd February, 2018

Feb 2, 2018

Dear Parents

1W Topic Assembly

Thank you, 1W, for an excellent Topic Assembly this morning in which you told us all about what you have been studying in RE and History. You told us that in History you have been learning about heroes from the past. You read your own written accounts of the amazing work of Grace Darling, Louis Braille and Mary Seacole. I also enjoyed hearing about the special books that are important to different religions. I was very impressed by how eloquently you spoke about The Koran, The Bible and The Torah. Your knowledge, understanding and delivery were amazing for children of just five and six years old. Thank you to Mrs Wilson for organising this assembly.

Praise for our Early Years

A Lancashire Early Years Advisor came to school on Wednesday and visited every department. She was very impressed with the layout of all the rooms and the activities which were taking place with the children. She said that she would be sharing examples of our practice with other nurseries. Congratulations to all our Early Years staff.

Open Day

Our Open Day is on Sunday 4 March, 11am-3pm. This will be a celebration of the work the children have been completing this year. Everyone is welcome! Please pass on the dates and times to anyone who you think may like to visit our school. We have a number of flyers in the office. Please pop in and pick one up for a friend, colleague, staff noticeboard, village shop or anyone you think may be interested. Thank you for your continued support.

The Wind in the Willows

Final preparations are underway and the children will be travelling to The Guild Hall on Monday and Tuesday in preparation for their Tuesday night performance. There are 99 children performing from the age of 4 to 11 on one of the biggest stages in the North West. Tickets are selling quickly so do make sure that you don’t miss out on what promises to be a very special night. Tickets are available from The Charter Theatre Box Office.

Out and About with Year 6 Art

I visited a Year 6 Art lesson on Tuesday. Faatimah told me that they were copying Van Gogh’s picture of a starry night. They were using the picture as a guide, choosing the colours carefully. Elizabeth told me that their pictures were pixelated and there were no curvy lines. Ziyad said the style was based on the artist Adam Lister who used the pixelated style to copy other artists’ pictures. Daniel said that he had used the style before to copy famous characters from films like Star Wars including Yoda and Darth Vader. Grace was focusing hard on her picture, using different shades of blue and grey to add definition and depth to the colour of the sky. The pixels were helping her to distinguish between the colours. Maddie had finished her picture and Miss Jewitt was using Apple TV to display it on the whiteboard as an example for the other children to look at. Maddie then moved on to creating the same picture on a sketch book app on an Ipad. The picture was really starting to come together and it looked very effective. Apala said that she was concentrating on the village, making sure each house and building was clearly defined in the picture. Her hard work and attention to detail really started to pay off as her picture developed and the image and atmosphere took shape. All the children were using easels and Ameya said that it helped her to look quickly between the example and her own picture, helping her to copy every detail exactly. The atmosphere in the class was very impressive with children engrossed in their own work and really trying to do their best. I can’t wait to see the finished pictures later this term and, from what I have seen, they should all be very proud of what they have achieved.

Staff News

Mr Fran McGrath leaves us today to take up a position in hospitality. I would like to thank him on behalf of the whole school for his commitment and hard work over the last year and for providing the school with a fantastic and varied menu each day. He will continue to support the school during the transition period.

Year 6 World Book Day Junior Mastermind

The children in Year 6 have been busy reading, in preparation for this year’s Mastermind competition. Round 1 took place on Thursday and the following children are to be congratulated on reaching Round 2: Zain, Ziyad, Sophie E, Charlotte, Lilland, Elizabeth, Sophie P, Ellie, Apala and Matthew. Round 2 will take place on Thursday 8th February. Good luck!

Under 11s Rugby

Congratulations to all the boys who travelled to St. Mary’s Hall, Stonyhurst on Wednesday to play in very wet and cold conditions. The boys really rose to the occasion, playing some excellent rugby and really demonstrating the progress they have made this year. They certainly deserved their showers and very popular sausage, chips and beans after the match. I would like to thank St. Mary’s Hall for their hospitality.

Under 11s Netball by Zahara

On Wednesday, the Year 6 A and B teams played in an away Netball match at St Mary’s Hall. We played St Mary’s Hall, St Pius X and Sedbergh. It was very cold but all the girls played well. The A team lost 1 match, drew 2 and won 1. The B team won 2 and lost 2. There were some great performances from both teams. These were tough matches in the freezing conditions but all girls showed great team spirit and kept smiling. Well done girls!

Snacks

Please could you make sure fruit items, especially grapes, are cut up for morning snacks.

Merit Awards

RD: Scarlett RJ: Johnny 1W: The Whole Class 2D: Taylor 2E: Frank

3H: Reya 3M: Rohan 4S: Brooke 5D: Holly 5M: Beth 6H: Danya 6P: Bebe

Monitor of the week: Faatimah

Thought for the Week

The difference between something good and something great is attention to detail.

Charles R Swindoll

Yours sincerely

J M Duke

Headmaster